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A Step By Step Guide To Creating a Google+ Business Page

Nearly every business has a Facebook and Twitter page in place – perhaps even a Pinterest page, but don’t forget about Google+. Google+ can serve as a useful social media method, not just for its social capabilities, but for its search capabilities. Unlike Facebook, Google+ combines search and social – ultimately aiding your SEO.

To create a Google+ page for your business, you must first have a Google and Google+ account.

#1. Getting started

First, go to your Google+ Home page.

Select the Pages icon near the bottom in the menu on the left. A “Manage your pages” page will come up. Click the red “Create new page” button.

You now have the option to select which category best describes your business. Select the appropriate category and then add your info into the provided fields. You can also specify who your page is appropriate for in case you’ll be promoting adult or alcohol related content.

Once your page is created, you’ll no longer be using Google+ as your personal profile, but will now be using it as a page. Notice the upper right hand corner icon has changed from your profile picture to the pages icon. This area is where you can toggle between using Google+ as a page or as your personal profile.

#2: Customizing your profile

Type in a tagline and upload a profile photo for your page. Profile photos are 52 x 52 pixels. It’s important to keep your businesses’ profile photo consistent across all social media platforms. Using your logo or icon is the best option.

Once you’ve come this far, Google+ encourages you to share your new page. If you’re not ready to promote it quite yet, don’t worry, this step is optional.

You now have a profile! You can now share posts, edit your “about” section and upload photos and videos just like you would with your personal profile.

You can also change your cover photo. The cover photo dimensions are 958 x 158 pixels.

Under the About tab you can add your information, including links to other websites affiliated with your business. You can put links to your other social media profiles here.

You can even customize who can view your contact information.

The “link website” button gives you a code to include in your website that will link to your Google+ Page. This is simply a hyperlink, not a button, and will need to be styled appropriately on your website.

#3: Adding Photos & Videos

You can also add photos and videos to your page as well as customize who can see them.

You can easily upload photos from your computer, name your new album, add captions and even rotate your photos.

You’ll also want to change the sharing options for each album to ensure they’re visible to your target audience.

#4: Adding Content

Now that your profile is complete, you’ll want to engage with your followers by posting valuable content. You can include photos, videos, events and links in your posts.

#5: Creating your network

You can create circles for your page just like in your personal profile. Connect with customers, friends, industry connections and more and segment them into circles so you can customize what content is visible to each.

Keep in mind, people must follow your page before you can put them into circles.

#6: Editing your settings

You can customize the settings and select managers for your page by clicking on “Page settings” or “Managers” in the top right corner. This is also where you can switch between acting as a Page and your personal profile.

You can add other managers by inviting them via email.

The finished product:

What’s Next for Google+

On August 13, Google announced it will be rolling out custom URLs to a limited number of Google+ Pages. The feature is available on Facebook and Twitter, but is currently only available on Google+ to some brands and celebrities. Follow Google Plus’ own Google+ Page and find out when custom URL’s will be available to the rest of us.

What’s your favorite feature on Google+ Pages? Leave it in the comments! We’d love to hear how a presence on Google+ has helped your business!

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